Shannon speaks with Andrew Over, the Marketing Vice President at Regence BlueShield, at the MBA annual Golf Tournament about the MBA Health Trust and why it's important for members to participate.

More about the MBA Health Trust

Contact: data@mbaks.com

Washington’s unemployment rate fell to 3.6% in September 2023, lower than the national average of 4.2%. The Seattle/Bellevue/Everett area with an unemployment rate of 3.2%. The construction industry added 3,400 jobs in a year, reaching a total of 240,300 statewide.

Read the full November Builders Bulletin:

By Margo Greenman, 425 Business

With inventory down 25 percent, home values and rents both increasing, and more people moving to the region, the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties said the local housing market is struggling with a housing affordability crisis.

"Despite efforts to add more housing, including a rise in apartment home construction in the region, the demand for housing has significantly outpaced supply," Master Builders Association executive director Shannon Affholter said in a press release. "Lack of buildable land and other barriers to new home construction have contributed significantly to escalating housing costs and a housing supply shortage in King and Snohomish counties. Unfortunately, this is making it harder for families and workers to find attainable housing near job centers."